"Why Sell Excess Tickets?" Delhi High Court Asks Railways Over Stampede | Read
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday came down hard on the centre and Indian Railways over the stampede last week at the New Delhi Railway Station, in which 18 people were killed.
A division bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyay and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela demanded to know why the Railways had continued to sell tickets in excess of the number of passengers who could be accommodated in a couch. A furious court sought replies from the centre and the Railways.
The court was hearing a PIL on safety measures to prevent such tragic incidents, and to enforce a section of the Railways Act that limits passengers per coach and prescribes a six-month jail term to those who flout the rule. The rule in question is Section 147, which also prescribes a Rs 1,000 fine.
